Latvian Foreign Minister Krišjanis Karinš said that Russia “will not stop” after the war in Ukraine and that NATO needs a “long-term strategy” to deter Moscow.
“Russia will not stop, Russia can only be stopped,” Karins said in an interview with the Financial Times published on Friday. “Stopping Russia in Ukraine does not mean it is over. It simply means we will have to continue. That is what is important for NATO: we will have to work on a long-term strategy to contain Russia.”
Karinš, a former prime minister, has expressed interest in succeeding Jens Stoltenberg as NATO leader, arguing that the alliance's next secretary general should come from a country that has met the 2 percent of GDP defense spending target, such as Latvia.
Because of Russia's "imperialist ideology," Karinš warned that the Kremlin's threat would certainly remain after the war in Ukraine. But NATO must make sure that "the likelihood of any incidents is simply ruled out by our resolve, our investments in defense," he said.
Karinsh is not the first senior official to warn about Russia's military ambitions beyond Ukraine. Last month, Belgian Army Chief of Staff Michel Hoffmann said the Kremlin could turn its attention to Moldova and the Baltic states after Kyiv.
Karinš will face former Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte — a favorite of major NATO countries like the United States, Germany and France — and Estonian Prime Minister Kaia Kallas in his bid to become NATO's next secretary general. Stoltenberg's term, which has been extended four times, ends in October 2024.
